Tribal Art

This ritual sculpture, plated with metal sheets according to the kota tradition, forms a stylized image of the ancestor, a coat of arms also for the clan, and is generally distinguished by the shape of the headdress, which varies according to the region.
The Kota inhabit the eastern part of Gabon, which is rich in iron ore, and some in the Republic of Congo. The blacksmith, in addition to wood carving, made tools for agricultural work as well as ritual weapons. The sculptures playing the role of "medium" between the living and the dead who watched over the descendants, were associated with the rites at bwete , comparable to those of the Fang . They are sometimes bifaces, the mbulu-viti, symbolizing the masculine and feminine aspect at the same time. This type of room, called ...

African sculpture whose singular face offers featureless features and a gaping mouth. The massive head, set into prominent shoulders, is decorated with a crest and a goatee. The volume of the pelvis is supported by wide, crenellated, arched legs. This type of statue was intended for funeral and initiation rites. Thick cracked patina, drying cracks.

The Kaka, or Keaka, ethnic group, so named by the German settlers, is located in a border area between Nigeria and Cameroon. Their statuary demonstrates a certain influence from other ethnic groups such as the Mumuye whose statues also present short, bent legs topped by a slender body. Their very thick and crusty patina, their wide feet and their wide open mouth are, however, typical features allowing them to be distinguished from ...

Stringed instrument whose sound box is extended by a handle with a pattern sculpted in the round. The motif refers to the protective fetish of the Songye, here in the form of an exuberant artistically produced subject. Satin black brown patina.
In the 16th century, the Songyes migrated from the Shaba region to settle on the left bank of the Lualaba. Their society is organized in a patriarchal way. Their history is inseparable from that of the Luba to which they are related through common ancestors.
The Songyes created impressive statues with powerful features are often used during secret ceremonies, covered with accessories like feathers, skin and a horn full of magical charge.
Very present in their society, divination made it possible to discover sorcerers and to shed ...

Among the most iconic African masks, this sculpture stood out among the eleven types of Dan masks (Fisher and Himmelheber) because of its circularly hollowed out eyes to allow for better vision. These masks named gunye ge "racing masks," with an oval face and slightly concave center, were produced among the northern Dan and intended for participation in racing events. As for the zapkei, they intervene to prevent the spread of domestic fires during the dry seasons. Armed with a stick, they threaten unwary women and confiscate an object as a fine. Some of these masks ,the go ge , provided with a particularly sophisticated braided headdress, were only exceptionally used .
Mask on base : 43 cm
Black patina with a satin touch, granular residual inlays at the top.

Rare Byeri ancestor figure, a singularly naturalistic work of a woman with a muscular and fleshy body. The crested headdress is underlined with metal, linear scarifications vertically divide the face.
Velvety patina, abrasions of use and erosions of the base. Desication crack.
The peoples known as the Fang, or "Pahouins", qualified as conquering warriors, invaded by successive leaps, from village to village, the entire vast region between the Sanaga in Cameroon and the Ogooué in Gabon, between the 18th and the beginning of the 20th century. The boxes containing the relics of illustrious ancestors were guarded by the oldest man in the village, the "esa". Surmounted by a statue or a head that acted as guardian of the "byeri" boxes, they were stored in a dark corner of ...

The Ijos in the centre produce relatively schematic sculptures associated with water geniuses (owuamapu), such as this head with a stretched face, on which the features protrude under a tubular forehead. Magical virtues were attributed to this type of sculpture. Many tribes are convinced that these objects acquire their powers through the rites and consecrations to which they are subjected and during which libations and dances can be performed. Interesting grainy grey patina, locally cracked. Height on a base: 52 cm.

The Ijaw are a group of Peoples of West Africa, mainly present in southern Nigeria, in the Niger Delta. At the beginning of the 17th century they migrated further west of the continent to form the Krou peoples of Côte d'Ivoire, Liberia, Guinea and Sierra ...

Ex-collection of Belgian African tribal art.
Old African entertainment mask made from dense wood, with a black patina. The headdress is made up of four braided shells extended by an excrescence. The face offers traditional scarifications called “ngole”. Height on base: 58 cm.
These portrait masks of the Baoulé, ndoma, frequently representing an idealized character, appear at the end of entertainment dance ceremonies. The latter are named, depending on the region, bedwo, ngblo, mblo, adjussu, etc.... Each of these masks are distinguished by hairstyles, location and choice of scarifications, etc. Also called Gbagba, they personify graceful young girls or men whose valor or qualities of integrity are renowned. New generations are gradually replacing these Mblo dances called ...

Ex Italian tribal art collection.
The traditional arts of Western Indonesia are generally marked by the influence of Islam, Buddhism, and Balinese Hinduism. Thus Sumatra, among the islands of Southeast Asia, has inherited Asian theatrical traditions. It is here through an idealized naturalism that this sculpted head puppet shows the link between the human community and that of the ancestors. The delicacy of the features suggests in this case that it would be a character of high rank, whose peaceful and benevolent physiognomy is veiled by a subtle frown.
By transmitting the perception of beauty, the Batak of North Sumatra excel in the art of sculpture. The puppets and heads si galegale stem from a funerary tradition where the carved object replaces, when necessary, the ...

Shield of elliptical and convex shape, with regular dense and neat braiding, and whose center bears a wooden protuberance.
A nomadic people, the Tutsi were particularly decimated by the Islamic slave trade and by recurrent internal wars. The groups of people called "Bantous interlacustres", established between Lake Victoria and the Limpopo River, include the Ganda, Nyoro, Nkole, Soga, Toro, Hima, and the Tutsi of Rwanda and Burundi. Their cultures have similarities, like their artistic production and their objects of daily use. The Tutsi raise cattle. They also excel in the art of weaving and basketry. Source: "Africa, the art of a continent" Ed. Prestel P.157

Fringed garment, loincloth, bordering a hand-woven belt made of plant fibers and highlighted with glass beads. More than an accessory, this type of adornment above all forms a “rampart” against evil spirits.
Height on base: 36 cm.
The group of animist peoples Kirdi, or "pagans", as the Islamized peoples have called them, are established in the far north of Cameroon, on the border of Nigeria.
They include the Matakam, Kapsiki, Margui, Mofou, Massa, Toupouri, Fali, Namchi, Bata, Do ayo... They live from agriculture, fishing and livestock.
Among the Fali, the cult of ancestors is illustrated by a great importance given to the skulls of the deceased, because thought and knowledge resided there.

Collection of French African tribal art, the name of the collector will be communicated to the buyer.
This African figure Mumuye of the first generation, created by the sculptor rati or even molabaiene, is anchored on vigorous legs, the bust in a slight inclination . Distinguished by their structure, their hairstyle and their large pierced ears, these statues not only made it possible to call down rain but also played an apotropaic and divinatory role.
Patina of heterogeneous use. Abrasions, erosions and desiccation cracks.
The statuary emanating from the north-west region of middle Benoué, from the Kona Jukun, to the Mumuye and up to the Wurkun populations is distinguished by a relative absence of ornamentation and a refined stylization. The 100,000 Adamawa ...

Ex American tribal art collection.

Consecrated by the nganga, endowed with a magic charge (bilongo) housed in a box closed by a mirror, this statuette meets the criteria of nksi objects. The Vili produced a variety of sculptures of individual use nkisi , to which multiple virtues were attributed. The glazed eyes, encircled with resin, symbolize clairvoyance in a face with naturalistic features. Various accessories are present, some of which would accentuate the power of the object, metal in the form of a padlock, basketry backpack lined with textile, headdress made of leather, strips of fabric and feathers. Eroded base. Chocolate shiny patina.
The Vili, the Lâri, the Sûndi, the Woyo, the Bembé, the Bwende, the Yombé and the Kôngo formed the group Kôngo, led by the king ...

Small anthropomorphic figure, devoid of arms, with a bust wrapped in cords, metal and garnished with cowries. The top of the head was hollowed out to receive various substances for a ritual purpose. These statuettes are said to relate to the ancestors.

In the southern coastal region of Tanzania, around Dar-es-Salaam, a relatively homogeneous group produced most of the artistic output. It includes the Swahili, Kaguru, Doé, Kwéré, Luguru, Zaramo, Kami. The second region is formed by a territory covering the south of Tanzania to Mozambique, where some Makonde and Yao, Ngindo, Mwéra, and Makua live. In the North-East of Tanzania, the Chaga, Paré, Chamba, Zigua, Maasai, Iraqw, Gogo, and Héhé have an artistic production presenting similarities with Malagasy and Batak art, ...

Dedicated to a protective genius, this voluminous version of the African maskNam Gbalang or Lang Badna is a powerful symbol associated with the Vara cult.

This mask associated with the wild and dangerous spirit of the buffalo appears during the rites of passage of the Kaa festival and during high-ranking funerals.

According to some, this mask represents a queen whose Chamba lineage claims to descend from the forest buffalo.
The rounded dome of the mask, evoking a skull, is associated with death and ancestors.
The other characteristics are linked to the wild world of nature, so the mouth symbolizes the jaws of the crocodile. The Nam Gbalang mask is danced with a costume made of raffia which completely covers the body of the man who wears ...

Statuette representing a kneeling hermaphrodite figure, hands resting on his thighs. This type of sculpture associated with an individual cult adorned the Dogon family altar. Thick and dense grainy patina in greyish browns.
Carved for the most part on commission by a family, Dogon statues can also be the object of worship by the entire community. Their functions remain little known, however. In parallel with Islam, Dogon religious rites are organized around four main cults: the Lebe, relating to fertility, under the spiritual authority of the Hogon, the Wagem, the cult of the ancestors under the authority of the patriarch, the Binou invoking the world of the spirits and directed by the priest of the Binou, and the society of the masks concerning funerals.

Collection of Monegasque African tribal art.
Made by the blacksmith fon according to the instructions of the soothsayer named fa this ancient fetish whose general appearance is reduced to the essential part is draped with textile. Missing, matte patina.
The multitude of Fon gods (the vodun), similar to those of the Yoruba under different names, are represented by fetishes of all forms and nature. Their sanctuaries are found in Togo, Dahomey, and western Nigeria. Statuettes embodying the legba, protectors of the home, are often attached to them. The faithful administer daily offerings and libations to them, supposed to activate their power. The Fon live in part of the Republic of Benin which formerly formed the Kingdom of Dahomey. According to legend, a princess of Yoruba ...

Ample distended ears frame the face, moreover underlined by a crenellated beard and topped with a high tiara, of this sculpted figure. The assertive posture brings out the bulbous abdomen on which the hands rest. Locally peeling dark patina. Erosions, gaps, and desication cracks.

The Jukuns are a population of West and Central Africa living mainly in Nigeria in the upper Bénoué Valley, also in northwestern Cameroon.
Thanks to the he expansion of the old Jukun Empire, the Jukun or Wurbo of Nigeria scattered into two groups: one established south of the Donga River, and the second north of the region, near the Mumuye and the Wurkum. The attacks of the Chambas first of all, then of the Fulani then, contributed to the extinction of this kingdom. Their king Aka uku, ...

African Nkisi, nkishi (pl. mankishi )statue of the Songye, whose head takes on the features of the kifwebe mask. The arms surround the bust, providing, as dictated by custom, a space to grasp the sculpture with metal hooks. Here, the magical bishimba charge appears to have been introduced at the top of the head from which a horn rises. The piece has likely been stripped of its accessories.
Grayish brown matte patina with kaolin encrusted residue. Slight lacks on the base and abrasions. These protective fetishes for homes are among the most prized in Africa. The Nkisi plays the role of mediator between god and men, responsible for protecting against various evils. The large examples are the collective property of a whole village, and the smaller figures belong to an ...

Thick, lumpy patina of use for this African animal mask offering outwardly erect ears, a protruding forehead, a blunt nose and a large, toothy grin. Seams resulting from ritual libations. Slight residual pigments, red ochre, additionally appear at the ears under the crusty coating.
Desiccation cracks and abrasions.
The Dogon people are renowned in African tribal art for the myths and beliefs relating to their cosmogony.
The population is estimated at about 300,000 souls living southwest of the Niger loop in the Mopti region of Mali (Bandiagara, Koro, Banka), near Douentza and part of northern Burkina (northwest of Ouahigouya).They produce more than 80 types of masks, the best known of which are the Kanaga , Sirigé , Satimbé , Walu . Most of them are used by ...

Kouyou figures represented frontally, the hands placed near the armpits, under prestigious necklaces. Their scarifications would refer to the scales of the mythical serpent Djo, which would have created the world and father of Ebongo, primordial hybrid ancestor of men. Polychrome matte patina, abrasions, and cracks.
Two totemic clans once formed the Kuyu ethnic group, living along the river of the same name, in the northwest of the People's Republic of Congo: to the west that of the panther, and to the east that of the snake. A secret male association, Ottoté, played an important political role in the appointment of chiefs. The initiation of young people ended with the revelation of the serpent god Ebongo represented in the form of a head. The Kibe-kibe dances that accompanied ...

Collection d' art africainbelge
. Les expression artistiques d' art africain dans le Grassland camerounais.
Ce masque tribal africain , sculpté dans un bois dense, était porté sur le sommet de la tête. Le visage aux formes pleines, représentations humaines typiques des Grasslands, est coiffé d'une tiare circulaire ajourée. Cette oeuvre ancienne rappelle les masques tu nkum des Bamileke portés lors des célébrations du nja et les masques nzeup apparaissant au cours des danses et des processions de la société kunze (kemjye dans la région de Bandjoun) gardienne des traditions. Patine d'usage, abrasions et fissures de dessication.

Située dans la région frontalière du Nigeria, la province du Nord-Ouest du Cameroun, le Grassland  est constituée de plusieurs ...